In semipermanently storing color photographic materials as image recorded matter, it is required of them to hold color balance among three colors, namely yellow, magenta and cyan colors, of dye images even after they have undergone discoloration by preventing as greatly as possible the dye images from causing discoloration in the light (light discoloration) and that in the dark (dark discoloration) to maintain their initial color balance. However, yellow, magenta and cyan dye images are different from one another in extent of discoloration in the light and in the dark, and so color balance among the three colors is broken through imbalance of discoloration after long-range storage to cause a disadvantage that an image quality is deteriorated. For instance, since dark discoloration under high humidity circumstances is greater in yellow and cyan dye images than in a magenta dye image, a marked break in color balance occurred occasionally. When stored under the foregoing circumstances, it further occurred sometimes that molds and the like propagate themselves over the surface of a photographic material to cause marked deterioration of yellow images and, in case of color prints, to generate red spots in an image area.
For the purpose of solving the foregoing problems, using cyclic ether compounds or epoxy group-containing compounds is disclosed with respect to cyan dye images in JP-B-58-45017 (the term "JP-B" as used herein means an "examined Japanese patent publication"), JP-A-62-75447 (the term "JP-A" as used herein means an "unexamined published Japanese patent application"), JP-A-62-129853, JP-A-62-172353, JP-A-62-198859, JP-A-62-196657, JP-A-64-21447 and JP-A-64-23255, while with respect to yellow dye images, e.g., in JP-A-64-50048 and JP-A-64-50049. Concrete compounds disclosed in those patents were able to achieve some effect in improving dark discoloration, but failed to bring about a satisfactory solution. In addition, it occurred occasionally that the density of magenta color in a yellow image area was increased with a decrease of the density of yellow dye image. Generation of magenta color stain as described above presented a problem that it spoiled considerably a yellow dye image, which originally possessed excellent color reproducibility. Therefore, further heightening the keeping quality of yellow images is necessary also for retaining excellent color reproducibility over a long period of time.
As for the couplers forming yellow dye images, yellow couplers of the benzoyl and pivaloyl types which contain acetanilide as basic skeleton are known generally. In comparison with those conventional yellow couplers, the cycloalkanecarbonyl group-containing yellow couplers disclosed in EP-A-0447969 can produce yellow dye images having excellent spectral absorption characteristics and high density by the coupling reaction with the oxidation product of an aromatic primary amine developing agent. However, they are inferior to conventional yellow couplers in image keeping quality under high temperature and high humidity conditions.
As for the couplers forming magenta dye images, on the other hand, pyrazoloazole type magenta couplers are now used practically in place of pyrazolone type couplers because the images formed therefrom are superior in hue. Of such pyrazoloazole type couplers, 1H-pyrazolo[1,5-b][1,2,4]triazole type couplers disclosed in JP-A-03-141350 form magenta dye images excellent in spectral absorption characteristics, color reproducibility and fastness by the reaction with the oxidation product of an aromatic primary amine developing agent, and are appreciably reduced in a change for yellow in the white area (yellow stain) with the lapse of time. However, the magenta coupler of the above-described kind have problems of their generating magenta color stain in a yellow image area upon storage under high temperature and high humidity, particularly when used in combination with the above-cited cycloalkanecarbonyl group-containing yellow couplers.